Qaid-i-Azam Trophy
| Countries |
 Pakistan |
|---|---|
| Administrator | Pakistan Cricket Board |
| Format |
First-class (4-day) Final: 5 day |
| First tournament | 1953–54 |
| Last tournament | 2016–17 |
| Number of teams | 26 |
| Current champion | WAPDA (1st title) |
| Most successful | Karachi cricket teams (20 titles) |
| Website | Quaid-e-Azam Trophy – ESPNcricinfo |
The Quaid-e-Azam Trophy is a domestic first-class cricket championship played in Pakistan between teams representing regional cricket associations and corporations.
Named after Mohammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan, who was known as "Quaid-i-Azam" (Great Leader), the trophy was introduced in the 1953-54 season to help the selectors pick the squad for Pakistan's Test tour of England in 1954. Five regional and two departmental teams competed in the first competition: Bahawalpur, Punjab, Karachi, North-West Frontier Province, Sindh, Combined Services and Pakistan Railways.
The competition has been contested sometimes by regional teams, sometimes by departmental teams, and sometimes by a mixture of the two. In 1956–57 it was decided that Karachi and Punjab would have to enter three teams each, to make the teams more evenly matched.
Karachi has won the trophy 20 times (most by any team).
Shortly after the end of the 2009–10 tournament the Pakistan Cricket Board announced a new format that will see twenty-two teams split into division one and division two. The Board felt that two divisions would help the smaller teams compete with others at a similar level and would make the spotting of young talent easier as a result. This also meant that domestic revenues increased as a result due to more balanced fixtures that were less predictable.
In 2012–13 season of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, 14 regional teams have been divided into two groups of seven, with top four teams from each group progressing to the super league while the remaining six would be playing in the plate league. The league toppers will contest in their respective league finals. Either way, each team will at least play eight matches apart from the final.
The new regional teams are allowed to recruit five players from the old department sides, of whom four can be part of the playing XI. In a bid to give bowlers exposure to internationally recognised cricket balls, the board has also made the use of Kookaburra balls mandatory for the tournament.
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